Bittersweet
by RedLion2
Summary: After their high school graduation ceremony, Keith Kogane and Allura Castle say goodbye to one another. Set in my "Call of the Lions" universe, pre-CotL. Written for the KAEX "Broken" challenge. K/A


I do not own Voltron, or its associated characters.

Here is another, and probably my final, submission to the KAEX "Broken" challenge. It's again set in my "Call of the Lions" universe; the setting is Keith and Allura's high school graduation and subsequent break-up. Thank you for all the support for "Call of the Lions." I am truly enjoying myself writing that story.

BITTERSWEET

Allura Castle tried to concentrate on what was being said up the stage, but her thoughts refused to focus on the speech. Instead, they kept wandering to the handsome senior boy who'd picked her up and brought her to their graduation just an hour ago. She folded her hands in her lap and stared at the stage, trying to concentrate. The speaker was someone who'd graduated from their high school years ago and was now a corporate CEO. She supposed the woman thought she was imparting a lot of wisdom to all the graduates, but Allura figured all of her classmates were just anxious for the woman to get off the stage so they could get their diplomas and be done with it.

As the woman began to wind down her speech, Allura's stomach began to hurt, and she tried hard not to think about what would happen after the ceremony. She and Keith Kogane, her boyfriend, hadn't talked about it when he'd picked her up in his truck, for which she'd been grateful. She knew her tears would be attributed to the graduation ceremony, so she was glad about that – no one else in her class needed to know the truth. People were clapping now, so she clapped along, feeling a little sorry that she hadn't actually listened to the speech. It had probably been inspiring.

Now they were being called up on the stage, one by one. Allura took slow, deep breaths to calm her racing heart as she waited for her turn. She'd worn a pair of flat sandals with her pink sundress, not wanting to contend with high heels as she walked up the stairs to the stage and then across and back down it. She'd heard horror stories about former students tripping and falling, and she didn't want that to happen. Keith had assured her it wouldn't, anyway – he'd told her she was the most graceful person he knew. A smile flitted across her face, remembering. She got out of her chair and moved to the end of her row, waiting in line with the others ahead of her. Her chest hurt more now; she knew it was getting closer to the end, and she wasn't ready for it. She'd told herself it was for the best, and she _knew_ it was, but it wasn't going to hurt any less.

Now she waited at the bottom of the steps to the stage, and her heart beat so hard she was sure the boy in front of her could hear it. She smoothed the dark blue gown and reached up to gently touch her cap, feeling the tassel hanging off of it. The boy in front of her went up the stairs, and she followed. She wondered if she dared look out at the other students; she knew exactly where Keith was sitting, but was almost afraid to look and meet his eyes, which were no doubt on her. For so long, she'd wanted to graduate so she could move on to her chosen career, her dream: becoming an Air Force fighter pilot. She'd been enamored with fighter pilots from the age of five; her uncle Joe had been a fighter pilot, and he'd loved telling her and her older brother, Luke, stories about his career.

The boy in front of her was walking across the stage now, and she took a deep breath. _Don't trip and fall. Don't trip and fall._ She kept the mantra going in her head while her name was announced, she shook hands, got her diploma, and walked down the steps. _Safe! I did it!_ A huge grin bloomed across her face, and she hurried back to her seat. When she sat down, she smoothed her gown and dress and sat back, letting her heart slow from the adrenaline rush of knowing she'd made it. It was the first step in her plan to become the best fighter pilot in the Air Force, and maybe even in the United States. But along with knowing her first step was over, she also knew there was something that needed to be done in order to continue on her chosen career path. Her heart started hurting again.

She chanced a glance back behind her, but couldn't see Keith or Sven Holgersson, a good friend of theirs. All three of them were going into the military: she in the Air Force, Keith in the Marines, and Sven in the Army. Their lives weren't going to be easy, but the three of them had never wanted easy, anyway. She thought back on their high school years; things hadn't been easy for any of them the past four years. Keith's mom had died their freshman year during a climbing expedition up the Rockies. Allura remembered getting a phone call from Keith, his voice shaking with fear and so much sadness it had seemed to bury him. Even now, her blue eyes misted with how heart-breaking it had been. Keith hadn't been himself after that, not for a long time, and she'd wondered if he'd ever find his way out of the deep depression he'd fallen into. But eventually, he'd crawled up and out of the pit, and seemed to be stronger for it.

_And then my world imploded the next year…_She frowned, thinking about her parents' divorce that had finalized during the spring of sophomore year. Her older brother Luke had grown distant, not coming home for days on end, and her mom had spiraled down into depression and drinking. _And Dad went his merry way, moving to Florida and chasing women half his age. _She wasn't sure she'd have made it through the situation without Keith, who had become even more protective, a veritable white knight. Things had certainly been rough for both of them those two years, but they'd known things would be okay eventually.

As for Sven, he was the type of guy who didn't like taking the easy way out. He preferred to get down and dirty, and liked playing with fire, literally, sometimes. Allura had to smile at the memories of all the bonfires they'd had over the years, and of how huge Sven had gotten some of them. They'd even had the fire department called on them their junior year. That brought a quick smile to her face. She'd always admired Sven's go-get-'em attitude, his willingness to get himself into trouble just so he could say he'd done what he wanted to. She knew in this next phase of her life, she'd have to borrow some of his moxie if she wanted to succeed as a fighter pilot. While the US armed forces had long-been integrated, and women highly-successful in the military, female fighter pilots were still regarded with some disdain.

There was a long round of applause, and she discovered that Sven was up on stage, getting handed his diploma. She whistled, grinning when he gave the audience a flourishing bow. Forever chasing after the girls, he'd managed to stay friends with almost all of his exes. Her eyes roved the line of students waiting to hit the stage, and her heart jumped tremendously when Keith was near her row. He looked incredibly handsome in his dark blue graduation gown, his shaggy black hair sticking out from all over beneath the cap. Her breath caught in her chest when his looked her way, his dark brown eyes, so like melted milk chocolate, smiling warmly at her. She winked and he winked back, then he was moving along.

She knew she was considered one of the luckiest girls in their school; not only was she dating Keith Kogane, but she was best friends with Sven Holgersson. And, she admitted, she _felt_ lucky. No one dared mess with her, because they knew they'd be facing two very angry young men that were both protective of her. Her cheeks flushed a little, thinking back to a junior-year football game, when the opposing team's quarterback had hit on her at a bonfire at the beach later that night. He'd been pushy and a jerk, and when Keith had seen him, trying to coerce her into going to his truck with him, it hadn't taken long for the Kogane temper to spark. And Sven, while usually very cool and calm and always collected, hadn't taken long to get into fighting mode, either. The fight had been short and no other guy dared look at her the rest of the evening. She hadn't minded, though – she had never wanted any other guy but Keith.

A strong pang hit her heart, and she barely contained the tears that suddenly pooled in her eyes. He wouldn't be hers for much longer. She knew it had to be that way, and they'd spent months discussing it, but now that it was here, the final goodbye…she wasn't sure she could take it. She looked up at the stage, and Keith was striding across it now, confident and sexy and gorgeous, and a tear rolled down her cheek. She clapped hard, whistling, giving him the recognition he deserved. And he deserved his chance in the Marines. For as long as she'd wanted to be a fighter pilot, he'd wanted to join the Marines, to be one of the few, and the proud. Of course she would hold herself together. He didn't need her falling to pieces. He needed her to be strong and confident.

Fifteen minutes later, the ceremony was over. They'd turned their tassels when told to, thrown their caps with reckless glee at the end. And now she was standing for pictures with Keith and Sven, her mom smiling behind the camera, looking better than she had in the last few months. Sven's parents were taking pictures too, and Keith's father was smiling and nodding. She knew Mr. Kogane was glad his boy was going into the Marines.

Keith gave her shoulders a squeeze and let go, turning to Sven. He stuck his hand out to his friend as their parents moved off, greeting the other graduates' parents. "Congrats, man," Keith said, his voice deep with emotion. "Good luck in the Army."

Sven grinned and nodded. "Thanks. You too. You'll make a great jarhead." The two boys laughed, and Allura laughed with them, trying to keep the happiness in her system afloat amid the drowning darkness that she knew would soon engulf it. Sven turned to her and pulled her into him for a long, hard hug. He kissed the top of her head and winked at her. "And you, miss, will be the greatest fighter pilot the Air Force has ever seen."

"Thanks, Sven," she said, the darkness creeping in as he took a step back from her.

His eyes went to Keith. "Well, I've gotta go. My parents are taking me up to my grandparents' place for the rest of the day, and then tomorrow, I'm off and running to the Army." There was glee in his rich voice, and Allura swallowed back tears. She couldn't ruin his excitement. After all, she was supposed to be excited about leaving for the Air Force in two days.

"See ya, man." Keith gave him a hard hug, and Sven Holgersson turned and walked away from them, leaving them both with a small hollow place in their hearts. Keith looked at Allura, and his eyes softened. "Come on. We need to talk." She let him take her hand and lead her across the parking lot, over to the entrance to the football field, where a picnic table painted dark blue sat. They sat down, across from one another, and he reached for her hands. "I don't want to make this harder than it has to be," he finally said. His voice was low and sweet, and it about made her cry.

"I know, me either," she said. "We knew we were doing this a long time ago."

"Yeah." He swallowed hard, his jaw clenching. "I'm not coming to your graduation party tomorrow. I think it's better if we cut ties today." There was sadness in his voice, and he wasn't being unkind, she knew. He was being practical, which she expected of him.

"I think it would be better that way," she quietly agreed. She wished it didn't have to end at all, but they'd both agreed to this, knowing long-distance relationships didn't work out. "I'm leaving in two days, so I need to get things together before then."

"And I leave next week." Amid the sadness in his voice was excitement, and she knew he couldn't help the flash of it that crossed the depths of his eyes. She tried to smile, and he immediately squeezed her hands. "You don't have to do that, honey. I know this is hard. We both knew it was going to be." Gentleness soothed the words, and she nodded, determined not to break in front of him. She needed to be strong.

"You're going to be a great Marine," she whispered, watching his eyes.

"And you're going to knock the socks off the guys in the Air Force," he told her. He squeezed her hands once more, and let go. She drew her hands into her lap and folded them. They felt strange without the heat of his. He swallowed hard again and she could see the inner war raging in his dark eyes. He hated this every bit as much as she did, but it couldn't be helped. They needed, wanted, to concentrate on their career paths.

"Keith, don't make it so tough," she said. Her voice was heavy with tears. "I love you. I'll always, in some way, love you." She took a deep breath and rushed on. "You and I have been together since kindergarten. We've helped each other get through the tough times, and I will never forget you. Ever." She bit her lip hard and touched her chest, right over her heart. "You will always be with me, in here." The tears that had been crowding her eyes leaked out, running in warm salty rivulets down her cheeks.

He tried to smile and failed, the misery written all over his face. "I love you too, Allura. I've loved you since the day I saw you fall off that swing." He stopped, his words seeming to catch hard in his throat. "And I will keep you with me, always." His eyes filled and he looked down, clenching his hands into tight fists.

She knew she couldn't let his torture go on much longer. It was time to walk away. She got to her feet, resolution echoing through her body. Right now, at this moment, she would start drawing on the moxie she'd seen Sven exhibit all these years. Clearing her throat, she said softly, "It's time, Keith."

He nodded and got to his feet, and walked around the table to her. Putting his hands gently on her slender hips, he pulled her to him and looked down into her eyes. "I love you, Allura Mae Castle."

"I love you too, Keith Akira Kogane." She smiled through her tears up at him. "Now kiss me," she softly demanded. He grinned, took her chin in his hand, tipped her mouth up to him, and pressed his lips to hers. It was a sweet, gentle kiss, filled with all their excitement, hope, and longing. And when he drew back to touch his forehead softly to hers, she knew it had been the right kind of kiss for their ending.

"Good luck," he told her, taking a step back and moving out of her space.

"You too. Be careful," she gently admonished.

"And you." He flashed her a beautiful grin, turned, and walked away.

She watched him take the first few steps and turned her back on him, breathing deep to calm her tears and heavy, racing heart. She would never forget him, she knew that. He was an once-in-a-lifetime guy, and she was lucky to have had him as long as she had. Taking a deep breath, she turned and started toward her car. Started, really, for her new bittersweet beginning.


End file.
